Pastor Oma

"Pastor Oma, this is a small token of my devotion to the Lord. Please accept it," a woman said, taking ten copper coins from her embrace and placing them in Oma's hand.

Pastor Oma smiled kindly, "The Lord will bless you and your family."

The woman's face also lit up with joy. She took out another five copper coins and placed them in his hand, saying, "I'll offer a bit more. Please tell the Lord to also bless the Viscount!"

Hearing Claire's title, Pastor Oma's brow furrowed slightly, but he maintained a serene expression and replied, "If he believes in the Lord, then the Lord will naturally protect him."

Oma paused, then added, "It's just that he's been back in the Barony for so long and hasn't even visited the church once..."

The woman hesitated and defended Claire, "The Viscount must be very busy. He'll probably come by later."

Pastor Oma smiled slightly and moved past the topic.

"Why didn't your husband and child come with you today?"

This woman was a particularly devout follower. She came every week and always brought her husband and child along.

"Oh, my husband is working for the Viscount, and he's very busy right now, so I didn't force him to come. As for my son, he's currently studying at the school the Viscount opened. It's study time now, so he didn't come along."

"Hmm?" Pastor Oma frowned. "Are these matters more important than coming for worship? If their hearts are not sincere, they will be punished and sent to hell."

Upon hearing this, the woman's face turned fearful, and she pleaded, "They're just too busy. I'll definitely drag them here to pray another day!"

Pastor Oma nodded with satisfaction, "The Lord will bless you."

Today was not a day for worship, so after the woman left, the church became empty again, leaving only Oma alone within its walls.

Oma walked to the church entrance, weighed the fifteen copper coins in his hand, and looked with a worried gaze at the iconic building in Nafu City – the Viscount's mansion.

Ever since Claire returned to the Barony, fewer and fewer people had been coming to his church. Today, there weren't even thirty people who came to pray, and the collected money was less than five silver coins.

This Viscount didn't understand the rules at all. The first thing he did upon returning to the Barony wasn't to come to the church for a baptism, and he had waited for the man for so many days, yet there wasn't even a hint of him coming.

Moreover, he had made Nafu City so chaotic that believers no longer had time to come and pray. Those who didn't believe in the Lord like him would eventually go to hell.

According to the believers, he even hired a doctor for illnesses at a cost of only a few dozen copper coins, which cut off the main source of income for his church. He used to charge over thirty silver coins for each Holy Light Healing. Since that hospital opened, he hadn't had much business these days. Oh, no, no believers had come to receive the blessings of Holy Light.

"Great Supreme Bright Lord God, my Lord, please forgive my recent words!" Pastor Oma immediately repented.

What was even more detestable was that school. It actually prevented children from coming out to pray, which was an infringement on their freedom. It was a grave sin!

If this continued, wouldn't the younger generation of Nafu City be ruined by his hands? If they were too influenced by the school, their faith in the Lord would weaken, or they might stop believing in the Lord altogether. In the future, Nafu City would become a paradise for faithless demons!

The more Oma thought about it, the more uneasy he became. He couldn't let Nafu City be ruined by Claire's hands. He had to save this gradually degenerating city! He had to rescue those children from the school! At this moment, he was the embodiment of a savior hero!

Oma's excitement grew, his heart filled with a sense of mission. He pocketed the copper coins in his hand and strode purposefully towards the school.

Pastor Oma walked into the school grounds. Most of the students had been brought by their parents to pray before, so they were familiar with Oma.

Under Oma's guidance, they quickly gathered. Hundreds of students looked up at Oma on the podium.

Oma began with a righteous declaration: "Children! I am here to save you!"

"Your bodies are confined within this school, and your souls are also bound here. Think about how many days it's been since you've been to church to pray. You are so unfaithful, and the Lord will be unhappy. But don't worry, I know many of you don't want to come, so I've come to save you!"

A young boy below, rubbing his sore bottom, raised his hand and said, "No, we're happy to come. The teachers here are talented, they speak nicely, unlike my mom who yells at me, and the knowledge they teach is very interesting. I really like it here." The sore bottom was from a beating he received the previous night for not outrunning his mother.

Pastor Oma glanced dismissively at the boy, "Wisdom is given to us by the God of Light; it is innate. What knowledge can you learn here?"

The boy opened his mouth, "Then do you know why raw water can't be drunk?"

"What raw water? What can't be drunk?"

"Do you know what's in water that can make people sick if they drink it?"

"Water is just water, composed of water elements. What could be in it that causes illness?"

"Hiss! Pastor, you don't even know as much as I do. Let me tell you, some unclean water contains germs, and drinking it can cause illness." The boy was repeating what Claire had taught them a few days ago. Of course, being young and ignorant, adults generally wouldn't dare to contradict a pastor like this.

Pastor Oma's face suddenly turned red, his eyebrows shot up, and he shouted:

"You! Your words are nonsensical! Sickness is a test sent by the Lord. As long as you faithfully serve the Lord and come to the church for baptism by Holy Light, you will be safe. There are no germs in water that can cause illness!"

In his haste, the boy blurted out, "Then why can doctors also cure diseases?"

As soon as he said it, he felt happy about his cleverness, realizing he had found a flaw in the other's words. Was this the benefit of thinking that teachers always talked about?

"You, you, you!" Pastor Oma, flustered, pointed his hand at the boy, "Those who question the Lord like you will never enter the divine kingdom!"

Ultimately, Nafu City was too remote, and its Pastor Oma was too weak. If it were a Cardinal in the capital, such matters could be easily explained away.

Germs were actually tests created by the Lord to see people's loyalty to Him. Only those who believed in the Lord sufficiently could survive. The existence of doctors was also a manifestation of the Lord's benevolence; He couldn't bear to see His servants suffer so much, and with an insufficient number of priests, He bestowed upon doctors the ability to cure diseases.

Science requires falsifiability, whereas religion does not, which is why it can explain away anything.

"What's your name!" Pastor Oma, angered, walked down from the stage.

Before he could take a few steps, a figure blocked his path. It was Regan.

He naturally took to heart the matters that the young master of the school valued so much, often checking in on them when he had free time. When he arrived today, he noticed something was amiss; students were constantly rushing towards the podium. He had thought Claire had come to the school again.

Upon arriving, he realized it was Pastor Oma of Nafu City, and what's more, the pastor was spouting some nonsensical rubbish.

Regan had mingled in noble circles in the capital and had probably met more pastors than Oma had ever seen. He was already familiar with their rhetoric. Furthermore, since his young master had studied under a mage from childhood, he naturally didn't have a good impression of these church people.

"Pastor Oma, our students have class. Please leave," Regan said with a smile, now seemingly possessing a bit of Claire's demeanor.

Blocked by Regan, Oma calmed down, realizing he had been impulsive. With Regan now blocking his way, he had no choice but to give up and turn to leave, planning to return another time.

However, as soon as he stepped out of the school gate, Regan sent people to call two knights from the barracks to serve as security, preventing these religious fanatics from infiltrating again.

Thank you to "Bao, Bao Qin" for one monthly ticket, "Cat-Eyed Moon" for one monthly ticket, and "0x522" for the reward of five hundred Qidian coins (this is an old friend who followed me from my previous book, thank you for your support!)

Thank you all!!!!